La fécondité d’un tournant critique. Malentendus anciens et tendances récentes dans les usages croisés de l’histoire et de la sociologie en France
Joined uses of history and sociology in France have led to misunderstandings. Focusing on the works of Georges Duby and Roland Mousnier, I show that a certain vision of sociology is to blame. Presented as a theory of modernity, it assumes the primitive simplicity of the past, pictures society as a c...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | fra |
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ENS Éditions
2008-12-01
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| Series: | Tracés |
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| Online Access: | http://journals.openedition.org/traces/643 |
| Summary: | Joined uses of history and sociology in France have led to misunderstandings. Focusing on the works of Georges Duby and Roland Mousnier, I show that a certain vision of sociology is to blame. Presented as a theory of modernity, it assumes the primitive simplicity of the past, pictures society as a coherent whole and social agents as products shaped by a system. The use of sociology by historians then results in a functionalist, evolutionist and, often, determinist, view of society. On the other hand, refusing to believe in a necessary evolution towards “modern” societies exposes a degree of social complexity that cannot be reduced to arbitrary simplifications. This refusal can help us combine history and sociology around a study of complexity, provided we posit that change is the normal state of any society. Pragmatism and interactionist approaches prove essential when rethinking social links from that perspective. |
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| ISSN: | 1763-0061 1963-1812 |